Dune Rats, FIDLAR, Dartz, The Pingers @ Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide 5/9/2024

It’s a dangerous night to be a cold one at Hindley Street Music Hall. Smack bang in the middle of their dual headline tour, the garage-stoner punk trans-pacific pairing of Dune Rats and FIDLAR has rolled into town and tonight it’s Adelaide’s turn to ask, Who’s Scott Green?

Playing their first ever show in Adelaide, Snowy Mountains collective The Pingers kick off tonight’s proceedings as the first of four bands, entertaining a modest yet enthusiastic crowd with a series of snappy raw punk and hardcore numbers. Lead singer Teagz revels in the opportunity to rove the big stage with banter about cops, drugs, cyclists, and well, basically everything, and songs like Let’s Get Bag, Drinkin and Stop Telling Me What To Do pretty much sum up their MO. It’s all a bit of light-hearted fun.

For the second Adelaide live debut of the night, New Zealand four-piece Dartz enter the stage eager to engage with the early crowd. The four lads from across the ditch play an honest brand of punk/pub-rock equipped with some sweet melodies and a rugged energy. Lead singer Danz showcases his best dance moves, while bassist Clark flaunts some impressive bass licks on tracks like Earn The Thirst, Paradise and Steal From The Supermarket. Armed with an impressive new LP Dangerous Day To Be A Cold One, there’s enough in Dartz’ performance to envisage bigger and better things on the horizon for the Wellington lads.

The floor of Hindley Street Music Hall has filled out for FIDLAR who are back in the country sporting a new EP Surviving The Dream. No strangers to Australia, there’s a warm appreciation for the Californian boys in the room. Ripping through regular openers Cheap Beer and Stoked and Broke, the pit is bedlam from the get-go as the band belt out numbers old and new at breakneck tempo.

“This one was just made for Australian crowds!” singer Zac Carper proclaims as he strums the opening chords to By Myself, closely followed by 40 oz. On Repeat which features a cover of Wonderwall – cheekily slotted in following the lyric “I’ll never sell out man!”. Ever the gentleman, front man Zac Carper treats the ladies in the house with an enforced female-only moshpit for the whole of 5 to 9. Rounding out their set is a rousing rendition of Cocaine, which threatens to tear the roof off the joint, and is a timely reminder of the lightening in a bottle energy that is every FIDLAR show.

Hot off the heels of a brand new LP release, the bratty boys from Brisbane Dune Rats burst onto the stage with the title track If It Sucks Turn It Up. Reaching the stage of their career where blinding strobe lights, smoke machines and a bloody great backdrop form part of the show, it’s pleasing to see the once no-frills band have lost none of their trademark DIY energy. Sounding great with Shane from DZ Deathrays in tow, it’s actually hard to imagine another band that can sound so tight while still being so loose.

Their set features an early trio of hits Scott Green, Red Light/Green Light and Up which whip the already ardent Thursday night crowd into chaos, closely followed by anthemic tunes Memorable Night and Too Tough Terry. Adelaide’s own The Angels get a shout-out from front man Danny declaring them the “best ever Australian band” before they lunch into their popular cover of Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again?. The crowd needing no encouragement screaming the song’s trademark call-back.

The band round out the main set with another huge hit in Bullshit, before returning to the stage for an encore featuring the new FIDLAR collab. Dead, Rich or In Jail. Scanning around the room during the last song Beers, Bongs And Bullshit, there’s smiles a plenty and no shortage of friends arm in arm belting out the tender chorus. It’s a rather touching moment at the end of a raucous night, a simple reminder that having a good time with mates are what this band are all about.

So there you have it, a night of pingers, dartz, cocaine, cheap beers, bongs and bullshit. And no doubting there might just be more than a few heads wondering, should I get ‘up up’ tomorrow.

Live Review By Matt Eygenraam